FOUR| At all costs

ASHER

"Whatever shall we do, your highness?!"

"He is getting worse as the days go by!"

"We need help, serious help. Call whoever you need to, my king, my family and I would pay, but I cannot sit back and watch my son die in the hands of a thing we do not even know, and I..."

"Silence!" I growled, raising the index finger of my right hand to the crowd of ten men kneeling in front of me. One of them held onto the hem of my robe and I kicked his hand away.

I didn't need any of them touching me. Not after irritating me with their constant whining.

"Listen. I have said this before and I would say it again. The elders and I are working on a solution. We have contacted a famous doctor from Crescent Heart, whom we believe can help, and she would be here soon. There is no cause for alarm."

I did not know where my elders had seen her, or heard about her, but she has achieved great feats in Crescent Heart, and was known for her most famous research paper on small pox, which helped cure it in Crescent Pack. They believed she was the cure we needed here, in Dark Moon. I trusted them enough to believe them, but I was also eager to see this woman for myself.

"But you have been saying the same thing for over a week now, your highness! Crescent Heart is only a few hours from here, at most ten if you're taking a ferry. It shouldn't take her weeks to arrive if she would be coming!" Another man cried out.

Despite the fact that my anger boiled in the pit of my stomach at their inability to comprehend, I couldn't blame the man. He was right. It shouldn't be taking her so long to respond, especially as I had personally handwritten three other letters to her since we sent the first one.

"You seem to be forgetting that my father suffers from the same thing. I would want to help him, as much as I can, and that is what I'm doing."

"But, your highness..."

"Enough!" I clenched my fists and banged the both of them against the arm rest of my throne.

"I've heard enough. Leave my presence now. Once we receive the doctor, she would commence treatment on everyone else immediately. I have nothing else to say."

I watched as they all rose to their feet. They murmured, some even dared to curse underneath their breaths, but I let their insolence slide. We were all frustrated after all.

The plague had started a few months ago, and had already wiped out of forty five men and women in less than a week, before we resounded a dire alarm. Measure had been put in place to avoid the spread, but nothing seemed to be working. My pack, and even the werewolf kingdom in entirety was under attack.

It only added to the list of things that threatened to drive me mad. The pressure of finding a healer for the land, coupled with the one of getting an heir was enough to make any man crazy.

Ever since I caught my mate and Luna, Adeline, and my best friend, cousin and Beta, Reed, in bed, I had been a shadow of myself.

Nothing made sense to me anymore, and I was beyond hurt and betrayed. I had always thought that the one the goddess gave to you would love and adore you forever, but mine was not the case, and my pain grew worse everyday.

Six years had passed since that night, yet I had not been able to look at anyone the same. It became worse when they got married, and Adeline got pregnant a few months later. She had lost the baby, and the baby after that, even before they were born, but it left a question.

How was it possible that she could get pregnant so many times with Reed, but never once for me?

I heaved a sigh and sank deeper into my chair. Now that I was alone, it allowed me space to think.

Perhaps that was when the rumors of my impotence started. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't seem to find the urge to want to prove them wrong, because what if they were right, and I couldn't have an heir of my own because I was sterile?

"Your highness!" A cry from the door of my throne room caused me to sit up. I sucked in a deep breath once my eyes caught the familiar gray ones of my royal advisor.

"What is the matter, Gaston?"

"The doctor has finally replied!" He said aloud, beaming with joy.

My eyes widened immediately. She was just an ordinary woman, but her name - the mention of her - promised salvation from the plague. It was more than enough reason for me to rise from my throne and walk to him.

I snatched the letter from his hands and read through it. However, when I was finally done, the only thing left on my face was a sturdy frown, while my irritation slowly gathered at the pit of my stomach.

"The nerve of this bitch." I hissed underneath my breath, pressing the paper on Gaston's chest. Shocked he held it, but kept his eyes on me. He could not go through it without my permission.

"She says she has had a change of mind. She had no intention of helping us before, but after seeing how bad it's gotten on the news, she wants to offer her help. She wants me to fucking sign a contract, saying I won't harm her or anyone who comes along with her." I turned my back to Gaston and walked back to my throne.

Once I settled into it, I scoffed and shook my head.

"Women. What do they even think they are? Show them a little bit of admiration and respect, and they feel they have the authority to demand the world."

"But, sire, I do not think that should be an issue. I mean, it is nothing compared to what she has to offer us. Perhaps we should just reconsider and..."

I sent him a stony glare, causing him to shut the fuck up and stagger backwards. Good for him. One more word and I would have made sure he lost every wobbling tooth in his mouth. He was too old to have them anyway.

"I would not be reconsidering a thing. She has insulted and defied my authority, and I intend to teach her the consequences of doing that."

When Gaston swallowed hard, a wide grin crept up to my cheeks.

"Find this doctor Ross, and bring her to me at all costs. I would make sure she regrets every word she uttered in that letter."